Chery Tiggo bounced back, halting a late Gerflor rally in the third set to complete its sweep, winning 25-8, 25-12, 25-20 in the Premier Volleyball League Second All-Filipino Conference on Tuesday at the Filoil EcoOil Centre.
The Crossovers, who were coming off a four-set loss to Akari a week ago, tied the Chargers at the third spot with identical 3-1 standings.
“We just have to be proactive sa nangyayari kasi once we dwell on that masyado pang mahaba yung liga, pero at the same time kailangan namin magkaroon ng sense of urgency kasi every point, every set counts,” said Chery Tiggo head coach Aaron Velez.
“So I think yun yung naging mindset namin na bumalik lang kami sa trabaho and patuloy namin dapat yung proseso na we have to be matured right away,” he added after the game that lasted for just an hour and 11 minutes.
After taking the first two sets with ease, the Crossovers faced resistance from the Defenders in the third frame. The Defenders managed to get close late, trimming a five-point deficit to just two points via a 3-0 spurt, making it 22-20. However, that proved to be the end of their comeback attempt as Bien Juanillo committed an attack error before Jaila Atienza and Shaya Adorador closed the game with two consecutive blocks.
“Sa akin parati natutuwa ako bilang coach alam ng mga players ko na whenever you are given an opportunity in life or in playing, make the best out of it kasi you’ll never know when it’s going to give you that opportunity. Kanina yung dineliver nila it’s really more of their experience and hopefully doon sila mag-gain,” added Velez.
Velez emptied his bench and received contributions from everyone inserted on the court.
A total of 12 players scored at least one point for the Crossovers, with Eya Laure leading the way with a game-high 12 points. Cess Robles added nine points along with six excellent digs, while Imee Hernandez and Jasmine Nabor chipped in seven and six points, respectively.
Chery Tiggo will go up against Nxled next on November 9 at 4:00 p.m. at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.
Meanwhile, Jeannette Villareal and Jenny Gaviola had six and five points to lead the Defenders, who have now lost their fourth game of the tournament and ninth overall since joining the previous conference.
Gerflor will try to break through against PLDT on Saturday at 4:00 p.m. at the Philsports Arena as well.
